VIDBE-Q 2025 Volume 70 Issue 3
disabilities. Our most recent work has focused on a review of augmentative and
alternative communication interventions for students with VI, and a qualitative
exploration of determinants to being a TSVI with VI in education. Both of these
works are currently under review for publication.
As a Graduate Teaching Associate to Dr. Tuttle, I've been mentored in the
instruction of courses for our online master's degree program and in-person
undergraduate program, including Supporting Literacy Skill Acquisition in
Students with VI for graduate students, and Literary Braille and Teaching Reading
and Writing to Students with VI courses for undergraduate students. In terms of
service, I was privileged to be selected as a 2024 summer intern for the Research to
Practice (RTP) Division of the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special
Education Programs (OSEP), where I learned from and contributed to policy and
state projects focused on supporting students with VI and deafblindness nationally.
Our team got to present this work to the entire department of education, raising
awareness and educating our state's officials on field-related needs. Most recently,
I was elected as the Council of Exceptional Children (CEC) Division of Visual
Impairment and DeafBlindness (DVIDB) board of directors' student ambassador
for 2025. This service further avails an opportunity to advocate for students' needs
by contributing to position papers and events like conferences, which support the
dissemination of research supporting practice.
